Thursday, August 14, 2008

California Microbrew Goes Solar

Stone Brewing Company President Steve Wagner addresses the crowd at the solar celebration.

Stone Brewing Company of Escondido, Calif., one of the fastest-growing breweries in the United States, is taking its new brewing facility solar with Bank of America's help.

Banc of America Leasing, part of Global Corporate & Investment Banking, structured a 10-year lease purchase that maximized the available federal solar investment tax credits, utility incentive payments and the reduction in electricity bills to provide $2.5 million in financing for the project. This project, part of the Bank of America $20 billion, 10-year environmental initiative, is a prime example of the bank’s commitment to emphasizing the business opportunities created by green economic growth.

Stone Brewing Company’s 312-kilowatt system consists of 1,561 roof-mounted solar modules and is expected to supply up to 43% of the energy required to power the new brewing facility. Over its lifetime, the system will save Stone Brewing Company more than $3 million in electricity costs, and it is expected to pay for itself in just five years. The clean energy produced by the solar array will offset more than 538,000 pounds of carbon emissions over its lifetime, which is equivalent to planting 204 acres of trees.

“Environmental conservation is a core philosophy of the Stone Brewing Company,” said company President Steve Wagner. “We’re always looking for opportunities to conserve energy, to incorporate sustainable design and reduce our impact on the environment. We’ve been interested in adding a solar electric power system since we started planning our new building in Escondido. We are very thankful to Bank of America for their customized financing on this project — we knew we could count on them to craft a financing plan that maximized our benefits from the available tax incentives and utility rebates.”

“Bank of America provides strategic and cost-effective financing solutions for renewable energy projects for our private and public sector clients,” said Kate Collier, Bank of America Commercial Banking executive for San Diego and Orange County. “This exciting effort with Stone Brewing Company demonstrates that small and large businesses alike can afford to go solar, save money and reduce their carbon footprint.”